Thursday 6th March

This week we began forest school with a brand-new group of extremely excited children ready for woodland adventures. As usual, we chatted to the children about where we would visit that day and the children decided they would like to go where there was water. We are very lucky to have some very large ponds on our site so it was off to the ponds for a day of exploring. When we arrived, we noticed some men angling. The children were intrigued and the kind men came and chatted with us about the types of fish which were present in the pond, even showing us one of their biggest catches.  The children shared their own knowledge of fishing with one child stating, “In Peter Rabbit, the fish like shiny things”. The man agreed and explained that pike do like shiny things. The children are very good at teaching the adults too!

 We continued our day walking through the beautiful woodland discovering some new and exciting places to explore. We found a huge ditch which we attempted to climb over. It was really tricky but we had lots of fun trying. We also found a completely new piece of woodland which we have never visited before. Our plan for next week is to check on the anglers and then head to the new section of forest school so watch this space!

Tuesday 25th February

Our forest school day began as we jumped onto our minibus. We didn’t have a plan for the day but the children are always amazing at creating one. They decided they wanted to go and look for crocodiles. But which part of our forest school site would lend itself well to crocodile spotting? One of the children pointed out that last time we visited forest school, they had spotted a huge pond and that was obviously the best place to spot a crocodile so off we set. We did spot quite a lot of life around the pond but sadly no crocodiles. Maybe it was a little too cold for them.

There were lots of signs of ‘new life’ and the children were excited to spot buds on trees, catkins (or caterpillars as the children referred to them) and little yellow flowers which some children thought may be either daffodils or sunflowers. We ventured further along the path and then suddenly we found something strange, something which intrigued us all. What could it be? It looked like a wooden door in the ground. One of the grown-ups wondered if it was a trap door. Some of the children attempted to open it but it was ‘too secure’ in their words. What could be hidden beneath the wooden door? There were lots of thoughts. Could it be an animal, a gruffalo or what about a troll! But someone quickly pointed out that trolls live under bridges so it definitely wasn’t a troll. This would be mystery for another day!

We found a track which led all the way to the main part of our forest school site. Clearly the preschoolers are excellent navigators. The path was quite muddy but we do enjoy exploring muddy patches. As we headed onto our forest school site we saw something truly amazing! There in front of us stood three deer (we have been waiting for many weeks to spot them). Then we had another amazing moment. At lunch time another group of deer passed us on the hill. These deer were a slightly different colour but after waiting patiently for four weeks, we had been rewarded with spotting lots of deer. We were all thrilled!

Tuesday 18th February

This week at forest school we had lots of plans to look for signs of woodland animals so began our day at the very top of our forest school area. Our plans were quickly changed as the children discovered something amazing! We spotted huge walls, arches and doorways all around us. The children instantly thought we had walked into a derelict castle and it had been knocked down by someone or something! This discovery sparked lots of ideas about who could have lived in our forest school and what it was used for. 

The children discovered small holes in the side of the walls and wondered what might live inside. One of the children believed it could be where bats live with another child suggesting that bats only live in caves.

We soon came across an area where the trees had fallen and decided to investigate. We found a long path and wondered if this had been attached to the castle. It was a tricky climb to get up onto the path but we worked together and the rescue stick was used to help pull children up the hill. We all managed to climb to the top. Well done forest schoolers!

Tuesday 11th February

This week the children had an amazing day at forest school. We began our day in a different part of the woods which the children have never visited before. We found a small tunnel in the ground and a discussion ensued about why it was there and who might live inside it. The children conducted a thorough investigation and decided that it was a tunnel full of little mice but they were too scared to come and see us.

As we walked further down the path, we discovered a steep, hilly area which had a large ditch in front of it. The ditch provided a wonderful opportunity for some physical challenge. How would we cross? Was it possible? Was it safe? The children began hypothesising about how they could do it and eventually all twelve children and three grownups had crossed the ditch using various means. Then it was scaling the hill time where we chatted about the beautiful silver birch trees.

As we headed deeper into the forest, we discovered we needed to navigate a rather muddy, steep hill. It looked quite slippy and we wondered how we were going to get down safely. We carefully supported one another as we walked down the hill, arms outstretched and knees bent. We then balanced ourselves as we crossed the bridge and we were back into our forest school.

Tuesday 4th February

This week it was rather windy at forest school so the children decided instead of heading into our forest school site, we should go on an adventure. We all do love a forest school adventure!

As we headed deeper into the forest we spotted some amazing prints on the ground. We wondered what kind of animal may have made them. We had lots of guesses but one of the children knew exactly what had made them - a horse! Do we now have horses in our forest school?

On our adventure, we spotted an orange river which the children thought someone had poured orange juice into. We also met several dogs, found a strange ball on a leaf and found some strange looking fungus!

As we headed back to the minibus, the children (who were still risk assessing from the storm) spotted something dangerous. A huge branch had fallen and was leaning against a tree in our path. We were all a little bit concerned that this could cause problems for people walking past. But with our usual attitude of team work makes the dream work, the children got to work moving the tree and laid it safely on the ground. A super job done by an amazing forest school team!

Thursday 23rd January

This week was a very magical and creative week at forest school. The children were excited to find natural materials and create their own amazing structures. One child made a mobile, tying some finds along it which included leaves, sticks and berries. He then hung it from a tree so our resident Robin can swing on it when he wants to. Some of the other children enjoyed painting with mud and making beautiful pictures. We certainly have some very creative children!

Thursday 16th January

On arrival to forest school, we began walking along the path when we heard a strange sound. What could it be? Some of the children thought it may be a gruffalo, a squirrel, a hedgehog or a deer. We listened intently as the sound got quieter and quieter before we could no longer hear it.

The children looked around and were amazed to spot some frozen footprints along the path. This could be a clue as to what type of animal may have made the noise. One child thought the foot print may belong to a tiger whilst another thought it may belong to a dog. We would have to investigate! We dropped our trolley off at forest school and headed up the huge mountain to try and discover what was on the other side. Sadly, there was nothing there.

A little deflated, we sat down for lunch and to our surprise , there on the mountain was a deer! Could it have been the deer who left the print and made the sound? We were all in agreement, it was!

Thursday 28th November

This week we took a different grown up with us to forest school. As Diane hadn’t been for a long time the children explained the rules and how we keep ourselves safe at forest school. We also mentioned our forest school visitor and explained that Steve the robin is extremely friendly. As the words left our lips, guess who arrived? Yes, Steve and Stevie made an appearance! Diane was amazed and even managed to get really close herself.

Look at how close one of the children got to to Steve!

The rest of the day was spent exploring and having adventures. The ground was very frozen and one of the children realised that they could walk straight across the swamp which is usually inaccessible. Some of the children followed but then the ground started to thaw. Suddenly, the mud appeared and the children’s feet began to sink down. Quickly, we all managed to get ourselves onto the embankment where we stood looking at the quickly thawing swamp. Maybe we will try a different route next time!

Thursday 21st November

This week a new group of children began forest school sessions. As we waved our minibus off, we talked about how to keep ourselves safe in the woods. The children knew all about brambles, nettles, and staying to the correct side of the path. We headed into our forest school site and were hopeful we would see our little robin friend, Steve. Sadly, there was no sign of Steve. Nevertheless, the children got busy. We had den building, balancing activities and again lots of imaginative and creative play.

Not long after the children began working, we spotted a familiar face…. Steve was back! He happily bounced along the branches of the trees observing the children as they played. As lunchtime arrived, one of the children was amazed to see that Steve wanted to sit just above his head. He really is a very friendly robin.

This group of forest schoolers are showcasing their amazing skills in negotiating, communication and confidence. The children have enjoyed exploring the space and engaging with the environment. From minibeast and squirrel spotting to working out how to climb over fallen branches, we had it all at forest school this week.

Tuesday 19th November

This week was fire week at forest school. It was a rather cold day so we started our day with hot chocolate or warm milk and a snack to keep our tummies nice and warm. It was then onto building our fire. For some of the children, this was their first experience of fire and they were very excited! Jen built our fire and explained to the children how we use small pieces of wood to get it started and then use the larger pieces as it becomes more established. We then set to work making our lunch. The children ate cheese toasties and yummy beans and rice pudding for afters. The cheesy toasties were a roaring success and everyone devoured them (even the grown ups). Well done Jen, best toasties ever!

Tuesday 12th November

As we arrived at forest school we were confronted with a huge pile of chippings and a construction vehicle. The children wondered what might be happening. We spotted someone wearing a hi visibility jacket and asked him if he knew. He explained that his job that day was to renew some of our forest school paths. Another man jumped on the machine and drove into forest school giving us a little ‘toot toot’ as he left. He was quite fast and we couldn’t keep up so we looked at the tyre marks the machine had made. Suddenly we spotted something fly beside us. It was small, brown and red. You guessed it. It was Steve! He must have heard us and came out of our site to see us. He happily sat on the top of trolley as we headed into our site.

We talked about what we wanted to do that day and decided we should go on an ADVENTURE! We left our equipment on our site and headed up the huge mountain. It was really hard work but we persevered. Eventually we reached the top. We listened to the forest around us. It was quite loud with lots of bird song. Steve followed and sat with us. We moved on as we attempted to find another route to our site. One of the children thought we could move down the far side of the mountain. It started to get rather swampy but we managed to navigate our way to the wooden bridge which a previous group of children had made. With a little help, we all managed to cross safely.

After lunch we explored our site. As usual Steve watched on as the children investigated the fallen tree and the den. Our den is now a chip shop and a house offering a plethora of imaginative opportunities.

Can you spot Steve?

Tuesday 5th November

This week the children were excited to visit forest school and see if our little friend was waiting for us. As we walked into our forest school site, sure enough, there was Steve the Robin waiting for us. The children said good morning to him and he sang us a beautiful song. We set up our camp for the day and got to work. Some children decided to play on the fallen tree which is providing a plethora of imaginative experiences. It has been a plane, a car and a boat to name a few. This week it was a see-saw which the children loved to bounce up and down on, giggling as they did so.

Jen’s group decided to create their own interpretation of a robin using natural materials. Using leaves and sticks they thought about what a Robin looks like and what shape and colour it is. The end result was amazing!

One of the children was truly amazed by Steve and decided to follow him. Steve happily hopped from tree to tree chatting to the children. He is now a major part of our day and he loves nothing better than sitting with us for lunch. The children found some worms for him to eat which he gobbled up. This week Steve introduced us to one of his friends, another Robin who the children have affectionately named Stevie. The children think that Stevie may be Steve’s wife. She is not as sure of us as Steve is but she happily sat in a tree watching and waiting for us to finish our lunch.

At the end of the day, it was time to say goodbye to the wonderful woodland, Steve and Stevie. The children invited Steve back to nursery but he decided to stay. Keep your eyes peeled next time you are in the woodland. You never know Steve may pay you a visit!

Tuesday 22nd October

This week saw a new group of forest schoolers venture off into the deep, dark woods. The children were so excited as this was, for some, their first time at forest school. We began as usual identifying any challenges we may face that day such as brambles, dogs and of course the swamp! The younger children listened implicitly as the older children supported them with how to move through the forest, which path to take and where to stand when dog walkers pass. They relayed their knowledge throughout the day, demonstrating that they are true forest school professionals.

It was a beautiful day at forest school and the children got busy almost immediately. The practitioners were able to stand back and observe every child engaged in play. Some children were developing the den further by adding more and more sticks whilst others attempted to climb the tallest trees. Some children have discovered what can only be described as a minibeast city inside a log and spent the morning observing them moving around.

Of course, the day would not be complete without a very special visit from Steve, our friendly forest school Robin. He was waiting for us to arrive and once we were there decided to stay with us for the day. He happily walked amongst the children and even sat with us for lunch. Sadly, at the end of the day, the children had to explain to Steve that he is unable to get on our minibus and come back to nursery but we would be back soon to visit him. So long Steve, we will see you soon!

Thursday 10th October

As we walked along the track to our site we were confronted by a HUGE footprint. We wanted to work out just how big the footprint was, so we firstly tried to measure it with the children’s feet. The footprint was still bigger. The grown-ups then tried their feet but the footprint was still bigger! The children then tried two feet and it was still bigger! The children surmised that the footprint was made by a giant. We would have to use our sharp eyes to spot the forest school giant.

We were so surprised as we entered our site to be met with our little Robin friend. He is so friendly and came very close to us (Jen even managed a robin selfie). When we sat for lunch, he brought his little family to meet us. Lisa shared some information with us about robins. We were surprised to learn that robins prefer to sleep on the ground and that through the winter they come together and roost with other birds to stay warm. 

 The rest of our day was spent exploring the forest, spotting squirrels (we still haven’t spotted a deer yet) and spotting mini beasts. Before we knew it that time had come and it was back to nursery on our minibus with a lot of children having a quick power nap on the way.

Thursday 19th September

This week we headed into forest school and we were excited to see how it had changed over the week. We looked up at the trees and spotted lots of leaves changing colour. What was happening? One of the children pointed out that the leaves are falling off the trees whilst another explained, that is because it is Autumn time.

Courtney checked to make sure that our forest school site was safe and once checked, we headed inside and we were shocked at what we discovered! There, in the middle of the nest we made last week, was an egg! The children were thrilled and noticed that the egg was beginning to crack. What could be inside? Some children thought it might be a bird whilst others thought it could be a dragon. At that moment, we spotted our little Robin friend swoop down and stand right beside us. He spent the rest of the morning popping back and forth to check on us. 

We had two special activities this week. Kirsten had planned to create natural paintings and Courtney had planned nature crowns, both using natural materials to create something special. The children were intrigued by the activities on offer and wanted to get involved. The children crushed ferns and added water to soil to create their own paints as well as hammering flowers and berries onto their material to create the most beautiful natural paintings. The other group foraged for pieces of sticks, ferns and leaves which were attached to paper to create crowns. 

After lunch, it was time to explore. The children enjoyed moving around our site, adding to our den as well as creating our own structures. Imagination and creativity was definitely the order of the day. We hope our little Robin friend will rejoin us again next time. 

Thursday 12th September

As we ventured into the forest the children had a clear idea of what they wanted to do that day. The plan was to search for bugs, however as we arrived on site, Courtney spotted something truly amazing! We thought it may be a mushroom but it was shaped like a flower. Tara wondered if we might be able to look underneath but how could we do that as it was so close to the ground? Kirsten had a super idea and pushed our iPad as close to the mushroom as possible and we were amazed by what we were able to see underneath. The children chatted about what it looked like. We were now on a search for not only bugs but mushrooms as well!

 The children started to explore the area when we spotted a little visitor. It was a robin who sang us a beautiful forest song. It was a very friendly robin and some of the children decided to build a nest for him. He looked thrilled. The other children explored another area of our site where they discovered a tree with lots of twisting vines around it. We spotted little holes and something sparkly lying on the ground. Could this be the home of some magical creatures? We wondered what sort of creatures may be living around us. There were lots of wonderful ideas!

 After lunch, the children continued with their morning activities whilst another group of children began exploring sticks. They were fascinated by how tall the sticks were and a discussion ensued about who had the tallest stick, who had the shortest, what sticks could be used for and whose stick was taller than the grown-ups. Some of the sticks were really long and were definitely taller than the grown-ups. The time flew by and before we knew it, it was time to head back to nursery. We hope the little robin will visit us again next week.

Thursday 8th August

This week’s forest school was all about exploring! The children are now becoming more familiar with some of the areas we work in and this week decided to spend their morning working beside the ‘big stone’, a place the children love to climb and jump from. On the way the children found sticks and stones to create drawings in the mud and along the ground. We drew our names, animals and lots of wiggly patterns.

This week we met some very friendly dogs along the way and we talked about how to keep ourselves safe. The children have learned to step back and allow the dogs past and we also talked about crunching down low, making ourselves appear smaller to help support any dogs who are feeling a little nervous being around us. There was however, one very friendly dog called Daisy who loved strokes and cuddles from the children. 

In the afternoon, the children decided to work on our forest school site which is hidden away from the path. Everyone got busy either adding to the den, looking for minibeasts or balancing along the huge fallen branches.

Last week, one of the children decided he wanted to attempt to climb the huge hill (the mountain in his eyes) at the back of our site. He stood at the foot of the hill and gazed upwards. The adult asked if he wanted to attempt the hill this week and of course he did. The group wanted to attempt the climb together. We knew it would be tricky so we followed one of the grownups who showed us how to side step along the thinner areas, balance with our arms out and knees bent. We carefully meandered along the path and up the bank. As we climbed, we looked back and saw just how high we were. We kept up the pace and before we knew it we were at the very top and looking down at our forest school site. We had made it and the happy smiles on the children’s faces showed just how proud they were of themselves!

Thursday 1st August

This week saw a brand new group of children visiting forest school and wow were they excited! We began by talking about what we may see and this group were excited to see minibeasts and squirrels and hopefully a bear or a rhino. Sadly we didn’t spot any bears or rhinos but we did see lots of minibeasts from bees to woodlouse, spiders to snails, they were all there!

Our day was spent exploring our site. The children used their observational skills to spot slugs, snails, strangely shaped stones and sticks. There was den building galore as we added to the previous groups den work where we created a doctor’s surgery. We talked about how to stay safe on our site and why we all stay together. At the end of the day, no one was ready to leave. We had enjoyed our forest school picnic and wanted to continue with our exploration. We talked about what we would like to do next week and one of the children decided he is going to climb to the top of the mountain at the back of our site. Watch this space! We might just do that!

Monday 22nd July

This block of forest school sessions has yet again come to an end and to finish our time at forest school we cooked on our open fire. The children are complete professionals now when it comes to fire week and know how to start a fire, keep themselves safe and put out a fire. They are also the best chefs and prepare the tastiest pizzas ever! With a choice of toppings, the children got to work. Firstly, they spread out the tomato base before adding cheese followed by an array of yummy toppings. We had ham, mushrooms or sweetcorn to make our pizzas extra special. We all enjoyed the pizza that much, we had to cook another full round.

 After our pizza it was time for pudding. Again, it was one of our favourites – rice pudding. This time we added some blueberries and they were delicious! Just as we began to eat our pudding, the rain came down. We raced to the big shed where we could eat our rice pudding, staying warm and dry. Sadly, the grownups were not so lucky and had to tidy all the food away and wash the dishes. Luckily, the children stayed inside and had a lovely story about a slug. As soon as the dishes were clean, the sun came out and we could water the polytunnel. The plants really did need a big drink!

Monday 15th July

This week, the children chose to work in the same area as our last visit. Last week, we focused our attention on dinosaurs and this week we discovered something else living in our forest school. One of the children discovered a circular pattern on the ground. This could only mean one thing…there was a blue and white python with chicken shaped, hypnotising eyes! This was serious! As we were so close to lunch time the children decided to set traps around our tarpaulin so we would be safe. We began to collect ‘yoga’ (ogre) sticks which we piled together to create huge traps for the snake. We then listened. We could hear the hissing sound of a snake but we knew it wasn’t going to get past the traps. We were safe for now!

 After lunch, we headed into our site and discovered a huge number of snails and slugs. The children began to make small enclosures for them. We even found a big snail with a baby snail attached. We wondered why there were so many snails and slugs. They clearly like living in our forest school. The children really wanted to cross the wobbly bridge and get across the swamp but it was so wet and we couldn’t find a safe place to cross. We eventually decided it was much safer to stay on the firm ground and take care of our snails and slugs. We kept a sharp eye out for any deer but sadly we did not see any this week. We headed back to the nursery and chatted about our day. Would the snake make itself known next week? Who knows? We will be keeping a sharp eye on any rustling bushes that is for sure!